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After yesterday, I’m not sure I’ll get anymore scrapbooking done this weekend. I’m hoping to, though! I’ve got more birthday cards to tackle for next month! (If you celebrate a birthday in July, let me know. I’d love to send you a card!)

I completed two more single page layouts yesterday, on of which was already on my desk. It was waiting for some final touches. Then I made one more before heading to the kitchen to do a bit of baking with the twins. We might do more today, since it’s more rainy than yesterday was. The only problem with baking is that I eat it. 🙄 Scrapbooking doesn’t contribute to my weight gain. That’s why I love it so much! 🤣

Here’s two more layouts made with Fresh Air. To mix things up a bit, I used a couple stamps outside this range. The first is from Postcard Perfect, and the second is What Matters Most. The latter stamp set is available to purchase from my website. You’ll see it stamped in the background on the White Daisy card stock in the first layout.

In the second layout, would you believe that I trimmed two 3×4 PML cards into two and placed them in a column above and below one of my 3×4 photos? It is true. Rather than cutting into a 12×12 sheet of patterned paper to achieve the same effect, those worked just as well!

I also used a couple zip strips in this layout, too. The blue one was used as a border and the second was trimmed down and used to fill the gap at the bottom of the patterned paper column. Last, but not least, how great is the round stamp out there near the outside of the layout? It’s my new fave! It’s so unique!

Did you know that the turn around with close to my heart is usually fairly quick? From the date of order until it arrives on your doorstep is typically a week. In some cases, it’s even faster than that. Isn’t that fantastic news?

Shopping from my website is quick and easy too. Either type the product number into the search option (if you know it), or select from the tabs on the left hand side of the screen.

I mention this because 1) you may not know, and 2) I recently placed my monthly order and received it a couple days ago. I’m excited to share with you what I got and consequently began playing with 😊

The CTMH collection I chose to focus on this month is Fresh Air. It’s perfect for your camping, hiking, and general outdoorsy layouts, card and home decor type projects. You’ll find it’s also useful for creating masculine type projects. I certainly did. The colour palette is soft, warm and neutral. It reminds me of one of my dearest friends. If this collection could take on a human persona, I’d call it Leah. This collection was made for her. Maybe even Bolzenius, because it fits her sweet little family, too.

I had this picture of all my boys (RIP Gregory) relaxing on the couch. They were likely watching tv, because you can see the remote resting against the couch on the floor. In typical Gregory fashion, he had one leg stretched out, hugging whomever he was cuddling with. It was his way of being affectionate without being too affectionate lol.

The PML journaling cards were perfect for matting my photo, and creating a secondary focal point next to it. All three points together formed my theme and drove it home. How pretty are the gold leaf accents, by the way? I’m really digging those trees. And, of course, the wood veneer.

It’s going to be a rainy and possibly stormy day here, and since I’m taking a weekend (finally!!) to relax and renew, I’m hoping to get some more creating done! If my wish comes to fruition, I’ll have more layouts to share with you before too long!

I am not usually a scrapbooker that uses PML (also known as Project Life in other circles) cards in my artwork. I had a change of heart towards them recently, and the layout above is proof of that.

Believe it or not, I used two PML cards on this layout. One is a 3×4 card, and the other was a 4×6 inch card. The floral portion of the card inspired me. I thought it would look stunning on its own, so I fussy cut it out and layered it over the 3×4 PML card with some pop dots.

I think the colour combination is spot on- the colours of the flowers pop right off that dark (pewter, is it??) background. Pairing that with the bashful patterned paper from the coordinating paper packet (Gimme Some Sugar), and it’s a delightful match made in heaven.

Dark and light is perfectly balanced in this layout, too. And, it all stemmed from that 4×6 inch PML card! Unfortunately, Gimme Some Sugar has retired. But, did you know that each of our paper packets always includes two sheets of journaling cards?

They do! You don’t need to search my website for a particular PML card set, just search up your favourite current collection and treat yourself to the paper packet! They’re already included in a cut apart sheet!

Unless you strictly scrapbook with PML. Then by all means, purchase the coordinating, stand alone PML cards! It’s a win-win scenario for all paper crafters!

So, don’t fret. I will strive to create using PML cards more often in the future. This was a fun exercise in stretching my creative skills. It’s also a great way to inspire participation in my upcoming Try it Out Tuesday segment that is coming soon.

Try it Out Tuesday? Think Technique Tuesday, but with a TEDS CTMH spin on it. It is geared specifically to those that are new to scrapbooking and are motivated to learn more. I’ll share scrapbooking basics, define foreign paper crafting terms, tackle a variety of stamping and paper crafting techniques and share tips, tricks and more! I’ve created a group that’s linked to my FB VIP group page just for this occasion! I just need to make one vital purchase, and this segment will get off the ground! Will you join me? Message me below, and I’ll get you added to the group ASAP!

It’s been a looong time since I scrapbooked using Picture My Life cards. The sketch that inspired this layout also inspired the usage of journaling cards.

I’m loving that the tones in the one card pairs so perfectly with the Stargazer paper. There’s some Sorbet and Blossom (maybe also Pixie) in there. The Lagoon in the smaller journaling card also coordinates really nicely. I chose to trim it down and layer it on top of the larger one. They both come from (now) retired PML packs.

I snapped photos of the twins’ first ever report cards. I’m glad I did, because in years since, report cards no longer come home from their school- we have the privilege of viewing them online and printing them ourselves. It’s not quite the same. I prefer the good old days. They might not be the prettiest pictures to look at, but they’re still a memory worth documenting.

Hello friends, welcome to Thursday. How is your day treating you so far? I hope its a good one for you! Its survival mode day for me, meaning I headed out for a walk, got home and bawled my eyes out (this year has been so tough…grieving hasn’t terminated yet. Actually, it never will. But, I’ll eventually learn to deal with it.) Then I got up, purged my daughters’ bedrooms (throwing out two garbage bags full of trash. Yeah, I know. The best part? I only cleaned up their dressers and night stands. My children are like their father- they have to keep every.single.thing. I’m a purger. I always have been. I don’t get the need to keep everything! My kids cry when I suggest donating toys they don’t play with and clothes they never wear. My husband gets downright mad at me for trying to sell things we rarely use and haven’t looked at in the 6 years we’ve lived in this house. The struggle is real, folks! Are you in the same predicament? How do you deal with it?

Now, I’m binging on food and sitting in front of my computer attempting to type out a blog post. I hadn’t intended to start out my blog post that way, but there it is. No point in hiding behind my emotions. Its part of being human. And, part of grieving I suppose, too. (My children are going to be doing their own version of grieving when they get home from school and see what all I’ve thrown out.) I’m not sure I’m looking forward to it. I hope they don’t notice everything that’s gone.

I thought I’d share a layout I created using the new Adventure Cut Above Layout kit. You’ll find this fun kit in the new Annual Inspirations catalog. If you’ve never used this kit before, and have no idea what I’m talking about, you’re going to like what I have to share with you.

The idea behind this kit (and the card kits that come in the same line- Cut Above)- is ease of creating and simplicity. Images are included in the kit showing you what the traditional layouts and pocket style layouts could look like when you’re done creating. (I tend to follow what the pictures depict. I’ve always been a rule follower. When I bake, I need a recipe. When I scrapbook, I need a template to follow. If I don’t have it, I’m totally lost and draw a blank. I can’t move on until I’ve been given direction.) The card kits and layout kits are super simple to put together. All the materials you need to create either project is included in the kit. They’re also pre-cut so there’s no fussing and guessing what size icons and elements should be. They are also a breeze to assemble- the cards and layouts themselves will literally take you no longer than 10 minutes from start to finish. So, if you’re into speed scrapbooking, for any reason, this is the route to take!

All the kits come in different themes- there’s baby boy and baby girl ones, Adventure (as in travel), like the one I played with, and more. Head over to my website to have a look! Which is your favorite?

The best part about these kits?! They’re affordable AND there’s always odds and ends left over for other projects! How cool is that? Pick one of these bad boys up for just $19.00 CAD. (The card kits are typically $9.00 CAD, not including the cost of shipping).

Above is how the kit looks when it arrives on your doorstep. Below is how it could look after you’ve played with it some!

I like to combine a traditional layout with a pocket style layout when I play with these kits. The only struggle I have with the pocket style pages is that I have to fill the backside of the page protector with pictures of the same orientation as the front side (Side A). Often, the pictures that follow the first ones aren’t the same orientation! I don’t have a picture of it, but in this particular case, I got smart, and just filled the flip side (Side B) with journaling cards, and moved on to whatever I wanted to scrapbook next. It bothers me that I couldn’t utilize that space the way I wanted, but I’m relieved it isn’t wasted space. There’s my silver lining!

Thanks for joining me today! I’ll be back again soon to share a sneak of the Holiday Expressions catalog (which happily arrived on my doorstep yesterday) and a special project I’ve been working on!

As it turns out, the layout I shared yesterday is a huge hit! Even though I’ve experienced a negative in my life by losing pictures due to a technical malfunction, its still a positive. Sometimes, its just all in the way you look at things. (Which, more often than not, is a major personal struggle for me). Its a good lesson to learn!

And, as it turns out, there will be more layouts heading your way in the future that don’t have pictures in them. I remembered that I kept a bunch of paraphernalia from our last trip to Las Vegas (which I happen to be scrapbooking right now), and I wanted to make some layouts using that. Since I don’t have pictures to coordinate with the paraphernalia I kept, I’m creating them without! (The first one is my boarding pass; the second one- and more importantly- is Burgr. That is all I’ll say right now).

Do you create very often with journaling cards? Are you a project lifer, or do you use the PL cards in different ways? I’m a mixture of both. I like doing the occasional Picture My Life layout (CTMH’s version of PL), but more often, I like using them in my traditional scrapbooking. The layout I’m sharing today is just that type of layout.

I used some journaling cards that I had left over out of the CTMH Charlotte paper packet. I trim the ones I don’t use down, and store them in a little container along with all my other PML and Project Life inspired cards. (I don’t own any official PL cards). I thought the Charlotte ones worked well for this layout of my daughters’ lovey. Both daughters have had their own lovey’s since they were babies. The ones they have currently they’ve had since they were probably about 3 years old. They’ve lasted the longest! (Meaning we haven’t lost them yet!)

I inked the edges of the white card stock to try and eat up some of the blatant white space, and then inked a piece of scrap Forever & Always patterned paper for some depth. I’m loving this color palette- so fresh and bright! A pop of black doesn’t hurt, either!

This is the first time all week there hasn’t been something planned or on the go. I’m elated I have the chance to spend a few minutes with you and share another project!

This layout sure makes me pine for frost- free days! I created this layout to mimic a PML (Picture My Life) or Project Life layout, without using the proper page protector for it. So, you’ll notice the page is divided equally into your sections- three along the top and three along the bottom. In the first column on the farthest left of the page, I used PML journaling cards to embellish, title, and create a spot for the eye to rest from the bright and vivid colors in the pictures.

I added another (third) journaling card to the top far right on the page for some journaling. (Also, because the top most photo was cut to a 3×4 inch size.)

Lastly, to complete the page, I cut a trio of hearts using my cricut and adhered them to the centre of the page.

I began this layout with a watercolor background, then layered paper and photos ontop of it. I used a 3×4 CTMH journaling card and some chippy embellishments for a little bling; there’s also two large chippy embellishments at the top of my photo cluster. They’re also both CTMH.

I’m sharing an “usie” of my husband and I. It isn’t often yours truly makes it into a layout, but here it is. Sick it up, because it’ll be a million layouts before I wind up in another one. Just kidding, lol.

I began by creating a watercolor background, then layered scrap papers ontop of it. I used a CTMH PML card (Picture my life), stamped and fussy cut some elements, and cut the title with my cricut.

To finish, I added some bakers twine, lace ribbon and old Jillibean ephemera.

I used up some really ancient K&Co stickers that have been hidden in my stash for quite a few years. I also used some newer CTMH journal cards and paper flowers to embellish both sides of the page protector.

For a little extra flair (and further personal clarification), I stamped the year in white ink on the month date journal cards.